Rising stars up for Next Gen Finals

Milan, Nov. 6: Men’s tennis steps into the unknown next week when the young guns expected to follow in the footsteps of the current golden generation contest the inaugural Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan.

Not only will the fiveday tournament showcase exciting talents such as Canadian Denis Shapovalov and rising Russian trio Andrey Rublev, Karen Khachanov and Daniil Medvedev, it will trial some new innovations aimed at “futureproofing” the sport.

Several other sports, notably cricket, have adopted new shortened formats to appeal to a younger generation of fans, both at venues and on television.

The Next Gen ATP Finals, eligible to players aged 21 and under, will attempt to follow suit by offering a glimpse of potential grand slam battles over the next decade.

Perhaps motivated by the void looming when the likes of 30-somethings Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka decide to hang up their rackets, the ATP is determined to adapt to a changing marketplace.

Next Gen trailblazer Alexander Zverev will be missing in Milan after a stunning year allowed the German to qualify with the ‘big boys’ for the following week’s ATP Finals in London.

But in the likes of Shapovalov, ranked 51 in the world, 45th-ranked Khachanov and Rublev, the highest-ranked at 37, the men’s Tour body has an embarrassment of riches as it launches a tournament it hopes will become established on the calendar. The qualifiers appear happy to be “guinea pigs” for the new format featuring, amongst other things, short sets, shot clocks and electronic line calls. But they are wary of turning their backs on tradition.